Cameron Sturdevant

Spam, commercial and otherwise, is on the rise despite federal CAN-SPAM legislation. In a report issued last month, Jupiter Research said 64 percent of e-mail marketing offers from U.S. companies do not meet the laws requirements. Numbers provided by Ken Schneider, CTO and vice president of operations for Brightmail, bolster Jupiters findings. During a recent […]

Vector Networks PC-Duo Asset Management Bundle, which started shipping last month, is a cost-effective way for IT managers to track hardware and software via Windows desktops. I used the PC-Duo bundle, available through an annual subscription for about $12 per user per year (depending on the number of users), to track my lab equipment neatly […]

Trend Micro Inc.s Network VirusWall 1200 is a rackable 1U (1.75-inch) appliance that, as the name implies, is a virus-stopping tool that performs basic vulnerability assessment on Windows clients and virus cleanup. Click here to read the full review of Network VirusWall 1200. 2 Trend Micro Inc.s Network VirusWall 1200 is a rackable 1U (1.75-inch) […]

ScriptLogic Corp.s ScriptLogic 5.5 Enterprise Edition gains an innovative inactivity monitor, along with a raft of feature upgrades that make this stalwart scripting tool well worth considering for front-line IT staff in fast-changing Windows desktop systems. Click here to read the full review of ScriptLogic 5.5. 2 ScriptLogic 5.5, slated to ship this month, costs […]

Anti-spam managed service provider Postini last month announced that its founder and vice president of products, Scott Petry, had been issued U.S. Patent No. 6,650,890. The patent would seem to imply that Postinis Petry and the two other holders of the patent invented centralized preprocessing of e-mail on behalf of an ISP or end user, […]

Courion Corp.s Identity Management Suite 6.5 makes the hard tasks of handing out passwords and provisioning user accounts look easy. IMS 6.5 artfully ties together diverse databases, directory and certificate servers, and help desk and e-mail systems with a policy-based management interface. IMS 6.5, which recently was named the winner in the Authentication & User […]

I took an introduction to Intense Schools live-over-the-Internet boot camp training program and found that its a decent alternative to in-person lessons. The program re-created nearly everything a real classroom would have—except the coffee-break chatter and networking that often occurs during in-person classroom instruction. During my test run with instructor Julia Hull, we used interactive […]

My March 23 column on RFID hit a nerve with readers, a surprisingly large number of whom told me not to be so concerned about the widespread use of the tracking tags. Readers also questioned my understanding of how RFID technology works. I do understand what RFID tags are: small, inexpensive chips that use radio […]

WINNER PatchLink Corp.s PatchLink Update 5.0 Last year, IT managers spent a great deal of time stamping out attacks on nearly every desktop and server operating system and most applications. PatchLink Corp.s PatchLink Update 5.0 rose to the top of our pick list, reflecting the growing importance of patch management in enterprise systems. PatchLink Update […]

WINNER Courion Corp.s Courion Identity Management Suite 6.5 When it comes to authentication and user management, 2003 was the worst of times because the rapid escalation of identity theft, along with the emergence of “phishing,” made it clear that organizations must invest in user authentication and management to stay ahead of crackers and hackers. It […]

A denial-of-service attack that almost felled the company firewall prompted Steven Waters, vice president of systems at financial services company Cannex Financial Exchanges Ltd., to evaluate intrusion prevention technology. Cannexs Toronto office, where Waters is based, has 13 employees, about half of whom are involved in automating data analysis. “Our core business is gathering daily […]

The term “security bulletin” is becoming something of a misnomer, as reports of holes, and of worms and viruses taking advantage of those holes, are becoming part of the daily IT routine. Its not enough to be alerted when problems occur; IT managers must find a way to dump problems before they hit the network. […]